I still have the countryside in front of my eyes. Behind Tanvald and Desná a twisting road climbs up to Příchovice; on both sides there are forests and hills – and suddenly on the left side of the road, on a long hill there appears a stockade building of unusual shape, dominating its surroundings.
At the beginning of the 20th century a preaching station of the German Protestant Church of the Augsburg Confession in Jablonec nad Nisou was established in Kořenov. In 1908 a desire to build their own church led the local Protestants to the young German architect Otto Bartning who was only 26 years old at that time. We already mentioned him when we spoke about “Luther’s Castle“ in Nové Město pod Smrkem. An ambitious young architect designed a simple octagonal stockade building which became a local dominant. The foundation stone was laid on the 20th of May 1909 and already on the 20th of October in the same year the small church was solemnly consecrated.
Post war history was repeated in the whole Czech and Moravian border region. The German inhabitants left the republic, new inhabitants came to the mountains and members of the Tanvald’s congregation of the Unity of Brethren faithfully took care of their small church. The Seniority of Ochranov acquired the property in February 2009 and uses it especially during important church festivals. The village of Kořenov as well contributes to its maintenance.
On the 19th of September 2009 a big celebration of the 100th anniversary from its foundation was held here under the open sky, in front of the reconstructed shiny white small church. Besides other guests at this celebration there were also representatives of the Protestant congregation from the Austrian city of Dornbirn. And why just them? Since 1931 in this town there stands an identical small church, maybe just slightly bigger – thanks to the fact that the Austrian Protestants got the same plans for the construction of their church after the agreement with the inhabitants of Kořenov. Before you leave the top of the hill, make a break at the small church in Kořenov. You will not regret it.